You read that headline right. Alexis Maxwell, one of the funniest, most bubbly castaways I’ve ever interviewed, says she landed her spot on Survivor: Cagayan for her twerking ability. Strangely, she and her father actually applied to be on the show together even before CBS decided to do Survivor: Blood Vs. Water. Alexis also admits she could forsee the exact days the tribal swap and merge were coming. How? These are just a few of the fun factoids Alexis, who openly admits her numerous game mistakes, dished out when we talked today. I think you’re really going to appreciate this one. Enjoy!

Before exploring this interview at length, please take a quick second to follow me on Twitter @RyanSurvivor. Thanks in advance!

Question: It seems like the biggest mistake you made was playing too hard. Do you agree?

Alexis Maxwell: They didn’t show a lot, but I made a lot more mistakes than that (laughs). I was so disappointed. I just wanted to do better. I felt, as a fan, I was playing for all the fans that would really kill to be on the show. I thought it was a missed opportunity, like I blew it a little bit. I was just disappointed that I didn’t make it further than that.

Question: What were some of the other mistakes?

Alexis Maxwell: More than once, I was very up front about my connection with Jefra and LJ. That was pretty dumb of me. Especially, I would talk about Jefra as if me and her were glued together. I was thinking it was helpful for me if they were considering me as two numbers instead of one. But they’re smart. They were thinking, why couldn’t I just go to Jefra then if we’re so close together? I thought I was helping myself, but really I was hurting myself. I should have known better.

Question: So watching the show back, how do you feel knowing Jeremiah was telling the truth about the hidden Idol clue?

Alexis Maxwell: I was certain that he was lying to me. There was no doubt in my mind at that moment that he was being a horrible liar. I feel kind of bad about it. Either way, if I knew he was telling the truth, that was still the only move I had to make and the only ground I had to stand on. So I would have played it the same way to make the Brains see he was the only one with a connection to the other people. But that didn’t really work well for me (laughs).

Question: Did you have any idea you were going to be voted out or was it a legit blindside?

Alexis Maxwell: It was a legit blindside. Actually that entire Tribal, I was fantasizing about my post-merge plans and how proud I was of myself. I knew the merge was the next day, so I was sitting there the entire Tribal Council thinking about the next day. I really didn’t forsee myself going home. I couldn’t understand it even when it happened.

Question: How did you know the merge was the next day?

Alexis Maxwell: I knew when the swap was coming and I knew when the merge was coming just because of the numbers and how things would play out. Of course, no one believed me when I would tell them these things. I was certain that it (the merge) was the next day and I was certain that I was gonna be there. It was really really heartbreaking when I wasn’t.

Question: What was your post-merge strategy?

Alexis Maxwell: I definitely was not going to flip because that’s five votes that you lose right there and you can’t win the game. That’s five jury votes. I was gonna hold out and coast a little bit with those six until there was only two members left of the new Solana. I knew I would be on the bottom of new Aparri, so I would try to get another bottom of Aparri to align with the leftover members of Solana.

Question: Why do you think you and your fellow Beauty tribemates couldn’t get together after the swap?

Alexis Maxwell: I think even if we have decided to stick together, none of us would have believed each other. We had that much lack of trust between the three of us. I definitely was holding a grudge against Jeremiah for targeting me. I knew Morgan was out for me the entire time since day one. I didn’t feel safe with them at all. I was more willing to trust complete strangers than trust them, which is very strange to think about.

Question: What was your thinking about the Brains alliance? Is there a ringleader?

Alexis Maxwell: Kass and Tasha, they were very blatant about how close they were. They would talk just them two together and then fill Spencer in. Spencer was kind of their third wheel. But that’s not a bad place to be since you don’t necessarily want to be calling the shots. He definitely wasn’t in control of their threesome, but he was obviously safe with them.

Question: Was the experience what you expected it to be?

Alexis Maxwell: It’s so exciting to just be on a show that you’ve been watching for so many seasons. It doesn’t seem real — even still. It just seems fake. It just doesn’t seem real. I love it. I love the whole experience. But seeing the other side of everything that’s going on is very interesting because I perceived a lot of people the wrong way. It’s definitely making me question my judgment of character a little bit (laughs). I made mistakes and was a little bit naive, so I’ll hold onto that while I can.

Question: Watching Tony as a viewer has been exciting. Can you explain the difference of competing with him on the show and then watching him as a viewer yourself?

Alexis Maxwell: When I was out there, I never got to play with him because we were never on the same team. But from the interactions we had before challenges and after challenges, I really didn’t think that he was playing aggressively. I thought he was just kind of a character out there with his accent. Kind of goofy. I didn’t perceive him from a distance the way that he is on the show. So he is very exciting to watch and I think he is very entertaining.

Question: Being a self-described fan of Survivor, how exactly did you land on this season?

Alexis Maxwell: My dad and I actually applied together. He forsaw a family theme coming up. We applied before Blood Vs. Water theme even happened. He told me, “If we apply together, we’ll definitely get on. I think that we have much better chances.” But only I got the phone call. It was exciting for the whole family, but I felt like I was playing for both me and my father.

Question: Sounds like you could be setting yourself up for another opportunity? Possibly another edition of Blood Vs. Water?

Alexis Maxwell: Oh my gosh! Are you kidding?!?! I would kill to play again. I would do anything to get my dad on there. He wants to play so badly. It would be awesome!

Question: When I asked some of my readers on Twitter what questions to ask you, several people made the same suggestion.

Alexis Maxwell: I know what you’re gonna ask (laughs).

Question: OK… Before the game began, you said in your interviews that you like to shake your butt. How much booty shakin’ was happening on the beach?

Alexis Maxwell: That was how I got on the show! My whole application video was me talking about my education and then I’d cut to a scene of me twerking. Then I’d talk about how powerful I am in my business internship. And then me twerking (laughs). It was really funny. It’s something I’ve done on spring break. It’s something me and my friends do. We thought it was funny. I mean, I guess Morgan didn’t think it was funny (laughs).

Did you feel bad for Alexis when she was voted off? Did you think she could have won the game? Would you like to see her return to play the game again? Are you sad she didn’t twerk at all on the show? Sound off and leave a comment in the section below!

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first she was kind of meh… but after this episode I (and many others) fell in love with her! a cute, smart and SUPER-likable super-fan, what more can you ask for?
I really hope her and her dad get on the next BvW! it was so heart-breaking seeing her go crying:/

I was very sad to see Alexis go of course, I am her Gramma. She is a brilliant, beautiful, fun, caring, loving person. She and her Dad (my son) would be great together on the show. They have a very close relationship and are very funny together. I know this is very boring, but I am old, and don’t have all the quick and quirky comments that a young producer would be attracted to. So take it or leave it. That’s all I have to say.